Organized by the 'MTA Centre for Ecological Research' from Budapest (Hungary), the summer scholl „SER Europe Summer School on Ecological Restoration 2018“ was held between 20. - 24. August 2018. Among 21 participant from 13 countries was the Geonatura employee, Luka škunca. The school was organized under the auspices of 'Society for Ecological Restoration (SER Europe)' and 'EUROSITE', and the aim of the progamme was the exchange of knowledge and experiences about grassland restoration and management, between researchers, site managers and policy makers.
Through lectures and field visits of restored grasslands, as part of the five-day programme, the participants succesfully tackled the following topics:
Grassland managements and threats in Europe;
Grassland sensitivity and resilience in the face of climate change;
Restoration of invaded grasslands;
Choice of seed materials for restoring plant communities;
Acceptability of spontaneous succession as a viable alternative for dry grassland restoration;
Useful techniques in restoration (seeding, mowing, nutrient reduction);
Conserving natural and historical values together, based on the example of kurgans;
Integration of traditional ecological knowledge of local communities into nature conservation;
The influence of habitat management and restoration on animal communities;
On the website of the schoool, the literature used for the presentation is available and can serve as an invaluable source of important papers about grassland management and restoration.